The 2020 NBA All-Star weekend is in full swing in Chicago, Illinois, with stars and fans flocking to the city hoping to capture some of the magic of events like the Slam Dunk Contest and Team Giannis vs Team LeBron All-Star Game. But one of Chicago's greatest native sons has decided to capitalize on the weekend's festivities to perform a bit of viral marketing. As captured by eagle-eyed social media mavens, Kanye West has apparently hired an armada of Russian ATVs known as Sherps to deliver his newest Yeezy sneaker, the QNTM.
Not Your Average Daily Driver
Multiple social media accounts and news media sites have posted vids of Kanye's stunt, which is sure to draw heads wherever he decides to take the show next. There just aren't many vehicles in the world that come close to resembling the Sherp, which looks like a giant remote-control or Tonka toy more than an actual car.
As shown in the pictures and videos, the Sherp's radical exterior denotes its all-terrain and amphibious nature. That aggressive body is constructed of steel and aluminum, with a design that makes it fully buoyant without even having its massive wheels and tires installed. One amazing engineering feat is that the Sherp has no suspension system, instead utilizing differential steering and the natural flex of its tires to take on the gnarliest terrain Mother Nature has to offer.
Looking Mean
The radical appearance of Sherp ATVs across Chicago, in neighborhoods including Wicker Park, Grant Park, and the West Loop region, is matched only by the futuristic design of Kanye's Yeezy sneaker lineup. Produced by Adidas, Yeezy's newest product is the QNTM (pronounced "Quantum"), which is supposed to add more of a sports-friendly iteration to the Yeezy family, as compared to the fashion-inspired past versions. The Sherp publicity stunt offers Kanye an opportunity to give shoes away to kids in his home town while simultaneously drawing exactly the kind of earned press he's become famous for over the years.
Sources: Complex, Sherpatv, NBA